Beam me up

By Bill BennettFebruary 22 2003
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There's a good chance you don't have a webcam in your life - yet. Only a small percentage of consumers own them and they are even rarer in business circles. Webcams are not exactly standard PC equipment and, until now, there hasn't been any noticeable rush to buy them as add ons. However, this could be set to change, thanks to technical advances, a new wave of more innovative webcam applications, more affordable broadband internet access and a sea change in the way people think about digital imaging in general.

For years affordable webcams were little more than novelty items. You could plug one into your PC and capture still or moving images, but the output was nothing to get excited about. Most early webcams worked only in black and white. Setting-up was often difficult. They delivered blurry output to tiny, postage-stamp-sized windows. Moving pictures were possible, but the lack of broadband communications meant that by the time video signals reached someone at the other end of an internet connection, they'd be lucky to get a jerky one frame per second (fps).

Unsurprisingly, early webcam applications were, on the whole, as lame as the hardware. The first PC videoconferencing products were little more than a joke. For a brief time, some people grabbed 15 minutes of fame by living their lives in front of one or more webcams, but the fad didn't last. Perhaps the most useful early internet webcam applications used strategically located cameras to show surfers the height of waves at Bondi.

Webcam hardware and software have certainly improved in recent years, but that's not as important as the arrival of broadband internet access and faster computer processors. Together these home-based cameras can transmit reasonable-sized colour images with decent frame rates through the internet. At the same time, DVD burners, digicams and similar technologies have triggered an increased interest at the point where video signals interact with personal computers.

Another key change came from a surprising direction last year when mobile phone makers started building cameras into their hardware. This put webcam-like technology in the hands of hundreds of thousands of consumers and stimulated interest among a group of people who might never have jumped on the traditional webcam bandwagon. Webcams are seen as a practical communications tool rather than a technical gimmick.
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The fact that webcam makers regard grandparents as a key target market illustrates just how mainstream the technology has become. Older consumers are not often targeted by companies operating at the cutting edge. Grandparents use the hardware to keep in touch with distant grandchildren via the internet. Many consumer-oriented webcams now come with videoconferencing software that makes this possible.

Others encourage their customers to use Microsoft's NetMeeting (www.microsoft.com/windows/netmeeting/default.asp), but these are not the only options. And support for videoconferencing via Windows Messenger is built-into Windows XP, which makes it easy to have a video conversation with someone on the other side of the world, so long as he/she is running the same operating system.

Instant messaging services such as Yahoo Messenger (au.messenger.yahoo.com) and Eyeball (www.eyeball.com) offer a webcam option allowing users to transmit pictures with their messages. The difference between broadband and dial-up performance is significant. If you use the Yahoo service with a modem, you might be able to transmit and receive 160 x 120-pixel images at the rate of one frame per second. Move up to broadband and you can expect to deal with 320 x 240-pixel images at up to 20 frames per second - in practical terms the difference is dramatic.

When choosing a webcam for most applications, you don't generally need to be too fussy about device performance. Even modest modern cameras are able to deliver bigger images and faster frame rates than you'll be able to push down most modem, cable or ADSL lines. Make sure the bundled videoconferencing applications are compatible with those of the people you intend to use it with on the other end, and that the software is compatible with your operating system.

Look for cameras offering support for plug and play and USB ports (your computer will require a spare USB port). You'll need at least a metre of cable to connect the camera to you computer - a longer cable is better. Check the camera is easily adjustable; the best cameras can be moved up and down as well as left to right. It needs to be able to attach neatly to your desktop or notebook.

As a rule, you'll get a better image if you can focus the lens as well. A built-in microphone will save you buying a separate microphone headset for videoconferencing, too.

Affordable webcams don't deliver better images than the one's you'll get from Creative's WebCam Pro. At 640 x 480 pixels you'll get 15 fps and 30 fps at 320 x 240 pixels. There's a built-in microphone, adjustable lens and snap button for stills. Although the stand can be used as a notebook camera clip, this doesn't work as well as the competing models. Skimpy bundled software lets the hardware down.

Designed as a business-class notebook webcam, the newest member of
Logitech’s QuickCam range offers 640 x 480-pixel resolution and, with the
right hardware, can deliver 30 fps. It can also take 1280 x 960-pixel still
shots. There’s a built-in microphone, a snap button for still photography,
rugged travel case and manual focusing. Logitech’s software bundle
includes Yahoo Messenger, support for AOL and MSN messengers, motion
detection and video email.

Swann's VersaCam Mini is surprisingly small: just 29 x 68 x 19mm. It has a stand and a clip for fixing the camera to the lid of a notebook computer. There's a 1.5m USB cable. With 640 x 480-pixel resolution delivering images at 15 fps (frames per second) it performs well, but there's no manual lens adjustment. The bundled software doesn't include videoconferencing; instead you are pointed at Microsoft NetMeeting.

If your budget doesn't stretch to a webcam and a digital camera consider the PC-Cam 600. Detached from its cradle it functions as a 1.3 megapixel still camera or low-end camcorder. Connected to a PC, it works as a microphone-equipped webcam, though with limited position adjustment. Creative says you can get up to 30 fps, but we didn't see this performance at the standard 640 x 480-pixel resolution.

The verdict

The top choice for mobile users is Logitech QuickCam Notebook Pro. It offers great performance and the most complete software bundle. Swann's VersaCam is a great low-cost introduction to webcams, but desktop users who are not on the tightest of budgets should opt for Creative's WebCam Pro, which delivers the sharpest images.

Infofile

Communications tools become really useful only when there are enough other people out there using compatible devices. Webcams could be about to hit that point. Last August, Yahoo Messenger announced it had taken just over a year to sign-up 6 million webcam users and an IDC study found 5 million new webcams were sold last year.